Another A-2

Cooper A-2 Commercial

The Outer Edge

Horsehide A-2

Recently I got a horsehide A-2 jacket from The Cockpit. (Picture above is not me, but you get the idea). I really like it, a new favorite. Horsehide can be a little tough when you first wear it and it takes a while to "break in." But there's no other leather like it.

Popped Collars

Sometimes I see guys (especially younger guys) wearing flight jackets who like to turn up the collars. Sometimes it looks good. How about you, ever pop your collar?

An Extra Step / Friday January 7th

I've decided to add the extra step of having a word verification for when you guys leave comments. Sorry for the bother, but this blog's comment sections have been getting a ton of spam and phishing lately. Hopefully this will help ensure only live humans are commenting.

Schott G-1

As a Christmas gift to myself, I got a good deal on a Schott G-1 jacket. A lot of Schott bomber jackets are pretty far from military-specs; you'll see all sorts of variations on the fur collars, the epaulets, multiple-piece leather backs, and so on. They look nice, but have a distinct look of their own. It seems harder to come across a more authentic looking A-2 or G-1 from Schott, but I managed to snag one.

Saboteur revisited

I posted a while back on the Alfred Hitchcock movie, Saboteur. I came across a posting over the blog Clothes on Film discussing the clothes the main character (played by the insanely handsome Robert Cummings) wore through a large part of the movie. His leather a-2 jacket was a key part of his appearance. The man is falsely accused, and on the run from the law. Does his leather bomber jacket contribute to his being perceived as a "bad guy?"

Considering the movie was filmed during WWII, I'm not entirely sure. The jacket had then, as it does now, strong associations with military service. Now, if he'd worn a motorcycle jacket like Marlon Brando, it might be a different story. Anyway, it's a great movie, so check it out if you haven't already!

Varsity Jackets / Blouson Teddy

I touched on this once before in an older post. It's a bit off-topic, but, I like to bring these jackets up from time to time. I'm talking about letter (or varsity) style jackets. I read once on a style forum that (to paraphrase) there are certain jackets every man should own: A leather A-2, a navy peacoat, and a varsity jacket. I couldn't agree more!

For my international readers, they have an iconic look about them, a "jock" style that hits something sexual with a lot of guys. While their appeal tends to be American-centric, I have seen them pop up in Europe, for example France where the the style is referred to as "blouson Teddy." I imagine this is in reference to the "Teddy boy" subculture of the U.K., though I can't be sure. (For some good European sources, visit Cuir-city.com, and La Canadienne)

I've also seen hockey players and university students in Canada wearing them, where they're often called "awards jackets." The Canadian leather company Roots always seems to have a version or two out.

Anyway, I can't get enough of them; I own a few myself, though I think adult men should avoid patches, numbers etc. - leave those things for your high school memories. My favorite is a plain yet classic black jacket with both black wool and black leather sleeves (similar to the picture below, yet without the patches on the arms). I have been thinking of getting a new one. How about my readers?

Happy New Year

Hope everyone's having a great start to 2011! Winter's one of my favorite seasons as I've mentioned before on this blog. And one of the great benefits of it are all the leather jackets out this time of year.

This winter, for some reason, I've been seeing a lot of younger guys sporting leather bomber jackets. Not just the "fashion" styles that are inspired by the real thing, but actual A-2, G-1 and B-3 jackets, among other military styles.

Perhaps it's an isolated thing, or part of a larger trend. Either way, I think it's a great thing. Hope to see more...

A recent G-1

Horsehide A-2

Back from hiatus

First, my apologies to those who emailed me and didn't get much of a response. And also sorry for the long break in posting. Many things were going on, and I didn't have time to post like I've tried to in the past. I'd like this blog to continue to grow (think of it as a New Year's resolution). This blog gets a great amount of hits from around the world, which means there are interested people out there, so I will do my best.

Let's start things back off with a video I found on Youtube... Kind of long and it's in German, featuring a guy interviewing a leather jacket maker. At one point he tries on several models, including a nice looking Top Gun G-1 reproduction (around the 8 minute mark).

If any readers come across any good videos out there, let me know where to find them!

Everyone looks great in a G-1

Another guy posing in his G-1 jacket.

Vintage style jacket

I got this in my inbox from a reader a while back, and forgot to share it. Good looking guy, and the jacket kinda reminds me of the old style Schott bomber jackets. I used to have one, bought it off a guy who lives near me. It was perfectly broken in. Wish I still had it.

Highway to the Danger Zone

Here's a hot dude posing on his motorcycle with a Top Gun jacket. Great patches - it looks just the movie. What a great combination. I love it when I see guys in flight jackets on their bikes.

Back again

I came across these images looking at a European site on flight jackets. It's been too long since I've updated, so here you go!

Happy Veteran's / Remembrance Day

Making Men Hot One Jacket at a Time

The colder weather brings out the leather bomber jackets. One constant trend I've noticed though is that while some younger guys sport their A-2's, G-1's (or the knock-off fashion versions) the majority of guys who seem to own them are older.

I wonder if it's a generational thing. But I see consistently men who are mature from different generations wearing flight jackets (for example, men who would have grown up anywhere from the 50's to the 70's) so it makes me think that maybe there's something about growing older that makes flight jackets part of a "mature" wardrobe.

This is odd, because at least in the beginning leather flight jackets were designed for young pilots in the wars. Then, in the 1950's, they became the thing to year for young men (haven't you ever seen all the bomber jackets in "Rebel Without a Cause"). So then maybe bomber jackets become a way of re-capturing youth?

The reason doesn't matter one bit to me! What got me thinking about this was tonight at the grocery store I saw an amazingly hot older/mature man wearing a brown A-2 jacket. He had "salt and pepper" hair and blue eyes... we made eye contact several times, and while I can't be sure if there was anything to it, I thought the guy was hot enough I'd notice him even if he wasn't wearing a bomber jacket. But the leather jacket helped!

Leather Jacket Season, Again

I love this time of year, especially since it's when guys bring out their leather jackets as the weather gets cooler.